How do I roast a joint of beef, pork or lamb?

Weight-based time charts assume a shape and a starting temperature that your joint probably does not have. A thermometer removes the guesswork entirely, and it is the difference between reliably good roasts and occasional ones.

What you'll need

• Joint of meat
• Roasting tin
• Meat thermometer
• Trivet of vegetables (optional)
• Foil (optional)

Step by step

1. Take it out of the fridge an hour before cooking.A cold joint cooks unevenly — overdone at the edges by the time the centre is right.
2. Dry the surface and season generously.Salt all over. For pork, dry the skin thoroughly and salt it heavily if you want crackling.
3. Sit it on a trivet of roughly chopped vegetables.Onion, carrot, celery. It lifts the joint out of its juices and gives you the base of a gravy.
4. Start at 220°C for 20 minutes to brown the outside.This is where the crust and much of the flavour comes from.
5. Drop to 160-180°C for the remainder.The lower temperature cooks the inside evenly without drying the outer layer further.
6. Cook to temperature, not time.Beef and lamb: 52°C rare, 57°C medium-rare, 63°C medium. Pork: 63°C. Poultry: 74°C. Pull 3-5°C early for carryover.
7. Rest for 20-30 minutes, loosely covered.Essential. The juices redistribute and the internal temperature evens out. It will not go cold in that time.
8. Make gravy in the tin while it rests.Pour off excess fat, add flour, cook it out, then whisk in stock and the vegetable trivet's flavour.

Tips

• Cheaper cuts like brisket and shoulder want the opposite approach: low and slow for several hours until the collagen breaks down.
• For pork crackling, score the skin, dry it thoroughly, salt it and give it high heat at the end rather than the start.
• Carve across the grain. It makes a noticeable difference to tenderness on any joint.

Common mistakes

• Relying on a minutes-per-kilo chart — It cannot account for shape, starting temperature or your oven's actual heat. A thermometer is accurate; a chart is a guess.
• Not resting the joint — The juices run out onto the board when you carve, and the meat is noticeably drier.
• Roasting a cheap tough cut fast and hot — Collagen needs hours at low temperature. Shoulder and brisket roasted like a prime joint come out tough.

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